On Greg Oden, Billy Packer, and the Florida Gators

If you aren't really interested in sports, go ahead and skip to the last paragraph. One of my brothers took issue with my comments about Greg Oden and Billy Packer. He wrote:

I do not agree with your assessments of Greg Oden and Billy Packer. Oden is the next dominant NBA center, and if anything, opponents seem to get away with fouling him quite often. As for Packer, my take is that OSU was making a little bit of a run at that point, and it might have been a good idea for Florida to call time out and get everybody calmed down, remind them that they're the favorite, and then send them back out there.

I totally agree that Oden might be the next big thing in the NBA (I'm hedging my bets because I'm a wimp). My point in the previous post was that in last night's game, I think Oden got away with a lot. I don't think the refs called too many fouls on Florida. I just think that if they were going to call it tight against Florida, they should use the same standard on Oden. Apart from that, Oden was a monster last night. If the other members of his team had played like he did, I have no doubt that they could have won the game. Fortunately for those of us in the Gator Nation (I know, it sounds stupid), they didn't, and Florida won. As for Packer, my point was that I think he was over-dramatizing what was happening. Yes, OSU put together a decent little run, but I don't think it was time for Florida to panic.

As for Florida's team, I have to admit I'm a little sick of Joakim Noah. It was kind of fun to hear him talk last year, and I think he's a great player, but lately he's been getting under my skin. Living in the Sunshine State we get a lot of coverage, and I really wish he sounded more educated. I do like Al Horford and some of the other players though. I wish them luck in the NBA, since there is no way that they are going back to college now. Next year will be a down year for the Gators, since the football team was decimated after last season, and now the basketball team will have to regroup. Maybe they'll make another run on a couple of titles again in a few years (if Billy Donovan stays).

Anyway, this is the last you'll hear about this topic, and I probably won't be back to sports for a while. I tend to watch sports only when I'm rooting for a team in the playoffs, so you might hear more if the Red Sox make a run on the playoffs.

The Surreal Life

Tonight we watched part of 'Dancing with the Stars.' Mostly, I wanted to see Heather Mills dance with her prosthetic leg. It seems unreal that she can do that. Well, the game started before she came on, so we missed it. Her Nibs had a great time, so we let her stay up late to watch until 9:00.

Well, as we were watching, I felt as though I was having an out of body experience when Cliff Claven started dancing the tango. I couldn't help myself, and I burst out laughing. I like John Ratzenberger, but he's still Cliff to me. Later, one of the guys from Nsync danced a tango to the 'Star Wars' theme. What a dork. I don't know if I can ever take that show seriously again.

I also have to say that Billy Packer, who is one of the NCAA championship announcers, needs to work on his delivery. By all accounts, Florida was the favorite to win (if you're not a Gator, you're Gator Bait!). At one point of the game, they went up 12 points. After a few plays, Ohio State cut the lead to 8, and Packer says, "The Gators are really in trouble here. They need to call a timeout." He was trying to inject a little drama into what was getting to look like a done deal, but he really needed to try harder than that. I forgot that teams had to win by at least 8 for it to count, I guess.

Also, I think there might have been some sort of payola going on, because the referees seemed incapable of calling fouls on Greg Oden. He should have fouled out early in the second half, but he lasted the whole game. Maybe they were trying to keep it a close game. But as they say, it's now water under the bridge.

Time Killer

Right now I should be hard at work revising my introduction, but I'd rather write a blog entry. Perhaps I should write about sports? I haven't really touched on that before.

Living in Florida, I am currently enthralled by the University of Florida men's basketball team in the NCAA tournament. I like sports, but I don't usually watch them on television unless a team I like is in the playoffs (college football is a bit different, because 'every game is a playoff'). Well, now the Gators have a chance at winning back-to-back national championships, and to be the first school ever to be basketball and football champions in the same year. The ironic part? For that to happen, they have to beat the same team the football team steamrolled in January. Boy, a lot could really go wrong here. . . .

Actually, I have a real problem with the way college sports are now. People talk about how much money sports programs bring to universities, but that is only true in a handful of cases. Usually, the best they do is pay for the other sports teams, bringing little or no benefit to academic programs. I'm in favor of college sports, but I think people have forgotten the point. It used to be that an athletic scholarship was an opportunity to get an education. Now education has nothing to do with it. This is especially true here in Florida, where big-time college sports (FSU, UF, and Miami) seems more important to people than fixing our public school system (I said seems for a reason--I know people care about the school problems). I'm not sure there is a way to fix things, but surely someone much smarter than me has some ideas?

Anyway, I've said my piece. I need to get back to work. Go Gators!

Am I an April Fool?

Today is April Fool's Day. In Spain, the equivalent day is December 28, the 'Día de los Inocentes.' Instead of pranks, people pull 'inocentadas.' My favorite story comes from the 1930s, when a newspaper reported that a particular politician had changed party, even though he hadn't. It took about a week for them to sort things out. Someday I'll think of a great prank, and someone is really going to get it.

Here at our house, we simply had fun painting nails today. These are the lengths to which a father will go to please his favorite (read: only) daughter. Her Nibs really wanted me to color my nails, too, so I agreed to let Plainbellied paint my toes. Well, as you can see from the picture, my hands ended up being included, too. Her Nibs picked all of the colors. Does that make me an April fool?

Me

Her Nibs

Twilight Samurai

I just finished watching a wonderful movie, and I have to write about it. The film, 'Twilight Samurai,' follows the experiences of a low-level samurai who is a widower with two young daughters and a senile mother. I won't give away the details, but the plot revolves around how he gets another chance with the girl he has always loved, but complications arise. His clan becomes involved in a leadership conflict, and he is ordered to fulfill a dangerous and morally suspect task. The film, released in 2003, is very different from most samurai movies because it isn't about fighting. And rather than express a reverence for bushido, it portrays a man who puts his family above honor.*

There are two main things that make 'Twilight Samurai' so good. First, the romantic relationship 'feels right.' One can recognize the feelings that Seibei and Tomoe have for one another without any sappy melodrama. Second, the tension that builds throughout the film is excruciating. Only a few movies draw me in like this (once Plainbellied came home while I was screaming at Alec Guinness in 'The Bridge on the River Kwai'). While I kept my composure tonight, I felt nervous and genuinely 'pulled' for Seibei to come out on top.

The only thing I would say detracts from this film is a weak epilogue. Other than that, it is a fabulous film with great acting and a compelling story.

* Bushido is the samurai code of honor. When I say that Seibei put his family above honor, I'm speaking specifically about this exaggerated code to which samurai adhered. I would definitely call him an honorable man by today's standards.

Her Nibs Week Continues

Her Nibs has been on a roll this week, so I have to tell another story about her. Tonight, we decided to try a new restaurant nearby. We tend to have dinner relatively early (it's an easier schedule for getting Her Nibs to bed), so we got there around 5:30. After we got settled and ordered our food, an older couple approached us and said, "We'd like to compliment you on your child. She has been so well behaved this whole time. We usually go out to dinner early to avoid the family crowd, but your daughter has been wonderful." After a few moments of trying to get Her Nibs to say hello, they left.

I have to say that I was awestruck by their comments. I'm not writing this to brag about my daughter (though she is wonderful!). In fact, my initial reply was almost, "Just wait around a few minutes, and you'll see what she's capable of." Instead, we simply said thank you and left it at that. It was nice of them to say something, though. Often, we only hear about our kids when they are acting up.

Which leads me to my next anecdote. On the way home, Her Nibs was cranky, and she wanted us to change the song on the CD. I told her, "It's not all about you." Her response? "But it is all about me." Imagine that in a two-year-old's halting voice. All I could do was laugh, which caught her off guard, effectively ending the tantrum.

By the way, Her Nibs is usually an incredibly sweet little girl. The credit for that goes to Plainbellied, who is an incredibly sweet and affectionate mother. I think the patience she learned from dealing with me has paid dividends. :-)

Is the Bed Really That Uncomfortable?

Her Nibs has had a hard time going to bed lately. She has given us grief for the past week or so, and a couple of times it has taken her several hours to go to sleep. In response, we would take the time to put her back in bed, with accompanying timeouts to make the idea stick that she needed to stay in bed. We really only do anything when she comes downstairs. Our guiding principle is that if she's upstairs and quiet, things are all right.

Well, she has changed her habits over the past two nights. Last night, when we went upstairs she was sprawled in the hallway—asleep. She had brought out her pillow and blanket, plus her stuffed pig and water-filled sippy cup. Tonight she did the same thing. It was so adorable, but it's a little disconcerting. We might have to do something about it eventually. But for now, we're just glad she's going to sleep.

One more anecdote: the other day, Her Nibs turned to me and said, "Daddy, you're my best friend ever." It was one of those moments fathers live for.